Attachment for hoisting-engines.



No. 878,218. PATENTED FEB. 4, 1908.

H. MAKER.

ATTACHMENT FOR HOISTING ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED 0(J"l.20.1906v 2 SHEETS-SHEET 1.

#49 firm/Twins No. 878,218. PATENTED FEB. 4, 1908.

H. MAKER.

ATTACHMENT FOR HOISTING ENGINES.

APPLICATION FILED 0OT.20.1906.

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

ITEI) STATES PATENT OFFICE.

HARRY MAKER, OF HIBBING, MINNESOTA, ASSIGNOR OF ONE-HALF TO F. E. DOWNING, OF HIBBING, MINNESOTA.

ATTACHMENT FOR HOISTING-ENGINES.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented Feb. 4, 1908.

Application filed October 20. 1906- Serial No. 339.745.

T 0 all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, I'IARRY MAKER, of Hibbing, in the county of St. Louis, State of Minnesota, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Attachments for Hoisting-Engines, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to hoisting engines used in operating a mine, andthe object of the invention is to provide means for auto matically stopping the engine when the skip or bucket has been raised to the desired height, thereby preventing all danger of damaging the shaft house, which frequently occurs when the engineer fails to stop the engine at the proper time.

A further object is to provide means capable of adjustment, to permit the point where the engine is automatically stopped to be varied according to the depth of the mine shaft.

Other objects of the invention will appear from the following detailed description.

The invention consists generally in various constructions and combinations, all as hereinafter described and particularly pointed out in the claims.

In the accompanying drawings, forming part of this specification, Figure 1 is a plan view of a hoisting drum and cable with twin engines for operating the same, and my invention applied thereto. Fig. 2 is a longitudinal sectional view of the cylinder to which steam is admitted to automatically operate the throttle lever. Fig. 3 is a detail of the mechanism for automatically admitting steam to the cylinder illustrated in Fig. 2. Fig. 4 is a section on the line x9c of Fig. 3. Fig. 5 is a detail sectional view of the valve through which steam passes to the cylinder shown in Fig. 2.

In the drawing, 2 represents a suitable base or bed, whereon the hoisting drum 3 is mounted in suitable bearings, on which drum, cables 1 and 5 are wound in opposite directions, so that when one cable is being wound up, the other one will be unwound, and one skip will ascend the shaft as the other descends, all as generally used in mining operations.

5 is a driving shaft mounted on the bed 2 and suitably geared to the drum 3. These gears are not, however, shown, being concealed by a suitable casing 6.

77 are hoisting engines connected with I the shaft 5 in the usual way and having pipe connections 8 leading to a steam supply pipe 9, in which a throttle valve 10 having an operating lever 11 is arranged. These engines are of the usual reversible type, but for convenience of illustration and description, I have omitted the valve motion devices employed with hoisting engines of this type, it being understood that these engines are reversible to operate the drum in both directions. A cylinder 12 having an open end is arranged near the throttle valve 10 and provided with a piston 13 having its red connected with said throttle valve operating lever 11. A pipe 14 leads from the pipe 8, and has branches 15 extending upon each side of said cylinder and communicating therewith at one end through a pipe connection 16. Valve casings 17 are provided in said branches upon each side of said cylinder, and within said casings are valves 18 having stems 19 that project out through said casings and corresponding interiorly arranged stems 20 that are slidable in sockets 21 in said casings. The valves 18 are normally held closed against their seats 22 by springs 23. hen these valves are closed, the passage of steam therethrough to said cylinder is prevented, but upon depressing the stems 19, the valves will open and allow the steam to flow therethrough.

In the operation of a mine, it is essential that the engine be stopped when the skip or bucket has been raised to the desired height. Otherwise, damage will result to the roof of the shaft house, the machinery, or both. It sometimes happens that the engineer will neglect to stop the engine at the proper time, and to avoid damage in case of such neglect, I provide means for automatically admitting steam through the valves 18 into the cylinder 12, to close the throttle valve automatically when the skip has reached the desired point. The mechanism which I prefer to employ to operate the valves 18, consists of a gear 24 mounted on a standard 25, and carrying an arm 26 that is adjustable 011 said gear by means of holes 27 therein and a bolt 28 passing through said arm. A head 29 is provided on said arm, having pins 30 on each end that are adjustable therein by means of burs 31. The engagement of these pins with the stems of the valves 18 will depress them suiliciently to allow the passage of steam into the cylinder and the operation of the throttle valve. The gear 24 is operated by means of a pinion 32, provided on a gear 33, supported on the standard 25 and meshing with a worm 34 on a shaft 35 that is driven by a chain 36 from the main shaft 5. These gears will be so arranged that the gear 2a will operate at a comparatively slow speed, and the arm 26 will be adjusted thereon so that it will engage and. open one ofthe valves 18 when the skip that is being raised has been elevated to the desired point. Upon the reversal of the direction of movement of the hoisting drum, the gear will be revolved in the opposite di rection and the arm will engage and actuate the other valve. The steam admitted through one of the valves to the cylinder, will actuate the piston 13 and close the throttle, and the steam remaining in the cylinder will act as a cushion and. prevent the engineer from raising the skip any higher, or starting the engine until it has been reversed. A petcocl: 37 is provided in the wall of the cylinder and connected to an operating rod 38, by means of which the engineer can exhaust the steam from the cylinder and start the engine. In addition to the arm 26, I prefer to provide a second arm 26, corresponding to saidfirst named arm and adjustable over the surface of the gear 24 in the same way, and provided with the head and adjustable pins 29 and 30. This arm 26 is designed for use at times when it is desired that the valves be operated at shorter intervals than the time required for the arm 26 to travel around with the gear from one side to the other. The arms being both movable on the axis of the gear, can be readily adjusted toward or from each other to increase or decrease the interval between the movement of the valves.

This device, in addition to being a very valuable adjunct to a mine hoisting engine, will also be found useful wherever a hoisting engine is employed and it is desirable to stop the engine at a certain predetermined point. It will be understood that as long as the engineer is watchful and stops the en ine at just the right point, my invention will be inoperative, but if at any time the engineer fails through any reason to stop the engine when he should do so, it will be automatically stopped and further elevation of the skip absolutely prevented.

I claim as my invention:

1. The combination, with a hoisting drum, having a cable wound upon each side of the center thereof in opposite directions, a driving shaft geared to the middle portion of said drum, engines having their pistons connected to the ends of said driving shaft, a transverse pipe connecting the cylinders of said engines, a fluid pressure supply pipe leading into said transverse pipe, a throttle valve having a suitable lever-and located in said supply pipe, a cylinder, a piston therein connected with said lever, a pipe connected with said transverse fluid pressure pipe and with one end of said last named cylinder, valves provided in said pipe and means operatively connected with said driving shaft and arranged to operate said valves to admit fluid pressure to one end of said throttle valve cylinder and operate said throttle valve when the drum has reached predetermined points.

2. The combination with a hoisting engine, its driving shaft and drum, of a cylinder and a piston therefor connected with the throttle lever, a valve arranged to control the admission of steam to said cylinder, a gear provided with a series of holes near its periphery, means for operating said gear from said driving shaft, and an arm adjust ably mounted in said holes on said gear and having a head arranged to engage said valve, for the purpose specified.

3. The combination, with a hoisting engine, its driving shaft and drum provided with cables wound thereon in opposite directions, of a cylinder and a piston therefor connected with the throttle lever of said engine, valves arranged to control the admission of steam to said cylinder, a gear wheel operatively connected with said shaft and driven thereby, and arms adjustably mounted on said wheel and adapted to alternately engage said valves and operate the same when said drum has revolved a certain predetermined number of revolutions in either direction.

4. The combination, with a hoisting engine and its driving shaft, of a drum operating from said shaft and provided with cables wound thereon in opposite directions, a cylinder, a piston therefor, connected with the throttle valve of said engine, spring pressed valves having sliding stems and arranged to control the admission of steam to said cylinder, and rocking arms for engaging and operating said valves one at a time when said drum has revolved a certain predetermined number of revolutions in either direction.

5. The combination, with a suitable frame, of a drum mounted therein and having cables wound thereon in opposite directions, a driving shaft geared to the middle portion of said drum, engines mounted in said frame and connected with the ends of said driving shaft, a transverse pipe connecting the cylinders of said engines, a steam supply pipe leading into said transverse pipe, a throttle valve provided with a suitable lever and arranged in said supply pipe, a cylinder having an open end and a piston connected with said lever, a pipe extending on each side of said last named cylinder and connected with said transverse steam pipe and also with the closed end of said cylinder, valves provided in said pipe, and means operatively connected with said driving shaft and arranged to operate said valves to admit steam to the closed end of said cylinder and operate said throttle when the drum has reached predetermined points.

6. The combination, with a hoisting drum provided with cables wound thereon in opposite directions, of a driving shaft, engines operatively connected with said shaft, a fluid pressure supply pipe having branches leading to the cylinders of said engines, a throttle valve provided in said supply pipe, at throttle cylinder, a piston therefor operatively connected with said throttle valve, a pipe connected with said fluid pressure supply pipe and leading into one end of said cylinder, spring pressed valves provided in said pipe and having sliding stems, a gear operatively connected with said driving shaft and arms mounted on said gear and having adjustable means to engage said stems and operate said valves against the tension of their springs, substantially as described.

In witness whereof I have hereunto set my hand this 13th day of October, 1906.

HARRY MAKER. WVitnesses:

T. S. SILLIMAN, Mrs. ANDREW BURK. 

